Macedonian homes flooded, villages cut off

SKOPJE, Macedonia - Three days of heavy rain have flooded hundreds of homes in eastern and central Macedonia, destroyed at least two bridges and cut off dozens of villages, causing power cuts and shortages of drinking water.

The National Crisis Management Center said Tuesday that about 20,000 people were without electricity in the central town of Sveti Nikole, and thousands of hectares of cultivated fields were inundated. The nearby Pistica dam was described as being in a "critical" situation, with authorities concerned it could collapse and flood the area with more than 800,000 cubic meters of water.

Roughly 300 homes were flooded in the village of Josifovo alone, 100 kilometers south of the capital Skopje, and the fire brigade was evacuating elderly residents.